At a time when some health club operators have dropped their membership prices in an effort to compete, training revenue has become an invaluable way to make up revenue. Fitness club owners and consultants say it is crucial that you layer on other services to that basic membership, and personal or group training is perhaps your best bet. Your revenue from these areas should match your overall membership revenue.
To be successful at this, you must do these four things:
Know your market. Consultant Ron Alterio urges health club owners to understand their markets and layer their personal training offerings accordingly. Consider what the right lead product is for your club, Alterio says, based on your revenue-generation goals.
"Maybe one-on-one [training] is the lead product offered," he says, "but if it's a smaller town, a group offering may be more appealing. No matter what market you're in, you have to have a variety of options. Instead of just selling a membership and having someone walk out with a contract, a key card and a class schedule, we coach clubs to focus on building the new member's toolbox. We don't want them guessing how many days they need to be at the gym, how to get to their goals or even how food plays a role."
Close in the first 48 hours. New joiners are most amenable to a complimentary personal training appointment within two days after they sign up for a membership, Alterio says. After that, they probably will not do it.
The personal training penetration rate is about 3 percent to 5 percent of members, according to statistics from IHRSA. Mayo says most clubs should be able to reach 10 percent penetration with personal training programs.
Club operators should have a goal of how many people will agree to an initial complimentary personal training appointment, Alterio says, noting that that might be 80 percent. Of that 80 percent, usually 70 percent show up, Alterio says, adding that after that, you can expect about a 40 percent close rate.
Rick Mayo, owner of North Point Fitness, Roswell, GA, says clubs that are the most successful at selling personal training have someone in a position dedicated to selling it.
"It's all about the execution," Mayo says.
Aileen Deak has been in a dedicated training sales job for four years at Edge Fitness Clubs, Fairfield, CT, and in that time, the company has increased its closing rate from 18 percent to 35 percent.
The Edge Fitness Club has a specific sales presentation that educates customers about how they are going to get to their goal, Deak says. The customer's first half-hour is a standard training session. The second half-hour is a sit-down with a fitness manager who recommends the right program for them. The trainer then comes back to the fitness manager with a recommendation for the best program for that customer.
While the fitness manager sell the training at the Edge Fitness Club and some other clubs, the director of training sells training at other clubs. Regardless of who handles the training sales, the important thing is to think of it as a two-level sell, Mayo says. The membership consultant sells the membership and then gives the client to someone who can sell the training.
Compensation for these positions may vary. On top of a regular salary, directors of training may earn commission on these sales. Mayo offers 3 percent to 4 percent, on average, of the total personal training membership value.
"The salary just depends on the market," he says, "but I like a performance-based salary, where when the PT membership grows, you can also grow the salary."
Scrap outdated methods for limited-time offers. The age-old method of pitching personal training to members right on the workout floor is like Bigfoot, Alterio says.
"Everyone knows about it, but no one has seen it [done successfully]," he says. "It's critically important for member retention and revenue, but very few clubs know how to do it well."
Problems often arise when the director of personal training or the fitness manager is either too short or too blunt in their pitch. If you go this route, Mayo says, the better approach is to deploy someone within the training department to canvas the workout floor, making him or her available for the existing customers as opposed to going for the quick close. The best questions to pose, Mayo adds, are, "Are you making forward progress?" and, if not, "Would you be open to help or guidance to fill in the gaps?"
North Point Fitness periodically offers a 30-day personal training experience.
"We will drift that in for a limited time rather than trying to pluck people off the floor, which can be a little bit awkward," Mayo says. "You have to mine your existing membership. But if the plan of attack isn't working, it's great to circle back for those 'Try It for 30 Days' offers.
Alterio adds: "Present with a problem-solving and caring attitude. You don't give someone a parachute without an owner's manual."
Offer attractive payment options. Alterio says another way a club can drive more personal training sales—and match the product to the consumers' needs—is to allow members to pay for their training on a monthly basis, just as they do for their regular membership.
The Edge Fitness Clubs offer only month-to-month personal training agreements.
"We don't box people into contracts," Deak says. "Our customers are only billed for what they use."
Clubs that do this could be onto something. After all, six months of personal training at $500 may not be as attractive in mid-range markets as it is in high-end markets.
"Clubs are just now starting to embrace it," Alterio says, because of that 3 percent penetration rate.
(Editors' note: Rick Mayo will speak at the Club Industry Show about layering memberships during his presentation, "You Gotta Have Layers: Creating Pricing Layers to Increase Personal Training Revenues in Your Club," at 11 a.m. on Thursday, Oct. 23.)